Who would have tought
by Anakin David
Summary: Set five years after the events of the Comic book "No power in the verse", a chance encounter disrupts the lives of some of Serenity's crew
1. Chapter 1

_AN: This story takes place 5 years after the comic book story "No Power In the Verse". A few things come from that verse, but the rest is the product of a frustrated brain.  
Not Betaed – all mistakes are mine (and English is not my native tongue). I also took some liberties with the official 'verse and the planet 'Aberdeen' – seen on the novel "Big Damn Hero".  
For those who haven't read these: directly after Miranda (Serenity), doubt seeps in the verse and different groups arise again, claiming independence. Some are young idealists who look out for Mal, some others are terrorists. Mal & his crew try to navigate between both groups and stir the movement. Inara has opted to be decomissioned and has started a relationship with Mal. All goes as well as possible until a terrible secret from Inara's past, and the reason why she chose to explore the verse instead of staying with House Madrassa, comes to light: she was indirectly responsible for a massacre when she revealed one of her client's confidences to Alliance officials (pre-series). The comic books ended there with that particular plot, I took Mal & Inara's story from there.  
Last but not least, all Mandarin translations are courtesy of Google, I apologize in advance if some of them are incorrect._

Malcolm Reynolds waved his crew away as they scattered through the streets of Dundee, Aberdeen capital's spaceport, all looking forward to a 5-day respite from deep space travel. Though it was mainly a mining planet, Aberdeen had its fair share of 'civilized' cities, and Dundee was one on them.

_Serenity_ was in the shop for a much-needed service and repairs which Kaylee herself couldn't provide on her own. She was in good hands and the coin they had amassed with their latest activities allowed a few luxuries such as new engine parts and the complete refection of the port thrusters which had been acting up for a while. It would do wonders to the old girl to be pampered and taken care of. Her last complete checkup had been courtesy of the operative, after Miranda, six years ago.

Mal was not really in the mood for anything specific. He had booked himself into a regular inn while the others had decided to explore the city and spend their share as they saw fit. The only instructions Mal gave them was "don't get into trouble" and "be in port on time".

He had confidence that Simon and Kaylee were going to remain behind closed doors and work on their newest project, River would keep Jayne out of trouble (how was that weird?!) and Zoë had some shopping to do with Emma since the latter had grown in heaps and bounds in the recent months, also she wanted to expand the meager collection of teaching tools she used for her daughter's formal education, when she had time.

Mal was therefore on his very own and strangely enough, he welcomed it. He hadn't taken some real time off for himself in a very long time, if ever, since Miranda and with the fall on the Alliance thanks to their meddling after the Peacemakers fiasco, the verse was somehow a little more peaceful.

After a couple of years of unrest, the Alliance government system had eventually imploded, and a new system arose. Core planets had remained the center of all administrative and government affairs, the parliament was on Bellerophon, the central court of Justice on Osiris, and the government was on Sihnon.

It worked so far. After a few adjustments, a coalition had emerged with representatives in the parliament from all the planets, from the Core to the Rim. Three elected representatives, one for the Core, one for the Border and one for the Rim, formed the actual executive government. Each corpus contributed to armed and police forces and each had a supreme judge who oversaw planetary courts which in their turns were responsible for local courts and local legal matters.

There were still skirmishes with the Reavers and outlaws here and there, but the verse was mostly safer and at peace.

Mal checked-in at the inn and took a long real shower before donning on fresh clothes.

He looked at this reflection in the small mirror. The shirt he wore was one of the best he had but it looked dull and well worn-out.

He reckoned he was in dire needs of new items of clothing: his momma had taught him how to sew and repair torn clothes, but some of what he owned was looking more like a patchwork than actual items of clothing and he had had to throw away two pairs of pants recently, one of which had torn in a very sensitive area as he was crouching to retrieve a crate. Fortunately, his ever present browncoat – which was also well worn out – had hidden most of it, but the fact remained that he was down two trousers. He decided to go down main street and see what he could find to broaden his wardrobe and where he could eat a good meal.

He wasn't in any hurry and stopped at several clothe stalls, fingering this shirt or that pair of pants. He finally stopped at one that displayed work and regular clothes and was moderately satisfied with what he saw. He hefted his purse from his pocket: maybe he would get a good bargain if he bought a couple in a row?

He went inside the store.

Twenty minutes later, his purse a mite lighter, he owned three new slacks and a pair of shirts, one blue, one red because he couldn't decide which one looked better on him. Malcolm Reynolds was becoming soft and that was… Ugh! Unsettling at best.

He couldn't remember the last time he had been so carefree.

As he was exiting the shop with his purchases, he didn't pay attention to the woman coming his way and inadvertently bumped into her.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am, I… INARA?!"

"MAL?!"


	2. Chapter 2

"What are you doing here?" they both exclaimed.

"_Serenity_'s in dry lock…" / "I work here…" they said at the same time.

"Wait, you work here?" Mal asked.

"Yes I…" she paused then smiled brightly "Mal, I never thought I'd see you again after…"

"Likewise, I mean… Inara… I…"

An awkward silence passed between them then Inara took his hand and started down the street.

"Come with me, Mal… this is hardly the place to talk and we have lots of catching up to do… I mean, if you have time?"

"I… Yes, I have time. 'Told you _Serenity_'s in the shop" I'm staying at the Golden Lion Inn, nobody's waitin' for me there."

"All right then, my place is not far from here, do you mind?"

She didn't wait for him to reply and resumed walking. Mal followed her. "So you… Err… You work here?"

She looked at him sideways "Not as a companion if that's what you're implying, I was decommissioned, remember?"

"I do, but you could have… err… gone back, I mean… You're still a beautiful woman."

She chuckled "well thanks, Mal…!"

"I'm sorry I didn't mean…"

"I know what you meant, but no. I didn't go back. I couldn't, for many reasons."

"So, what d'you do?"

"I'm an event organizer and behavioral counsellor," they had arrived in front of a small single story white house with a picture window decorated with blue drapes hiding the interior by the street, and a door on the side. "Here we are."

The house was attached to other shops/houses on both sides, but it looked cozy and well maintained, as did most buildings in this part of the street.

Mal gave it a quick appreciative look, "well at least you seem to do well…"

"it's not bad, I now have a tight network of customers here on Aberdeen, mining managers and businessmen, and I can set my own schedule."

"I meant the house," he said, pointing at the small building.

"Oh! It's both my work and living place, the front is reserved for work, I have a consulting room behind the picture window, where I meet with my clients." She opened the door and showed him inside,

Mal entered the house and Inara closed the door behind her.

She brushed past him and beckoned for him to follow her. "The back of the house is much cooler and my living space."

He followed her inside till they reached what looked like a large kitchen-dining room-living room with a shaded terrace outside. A small hallway on the right side led to what he assumed was the sleeping quarters. He reckoned the area was not big but spacey enough and comfortable for one person.

"You can put your things on the table if you wish, I am going to make tea, would you like some?"

"Tea? Ah, yes, thank you…"

She shook her head with a small smile. "Mal don't look so uncomfortable, after everything, there's no need to act like strangers…"

"I ain't," he said defensively, "it's just… like I said I never expected to see you again after five years and for a long time the mere thought of you was a little bit of a sore spot and I… 'Nara, I'm so glad I met you today," he smiled genuinely.

She blushed, smiling as well, and an awkward silence settled in before it was interrupted by the whistle of the kettle. "Saved by the whistle," Inara chuckled before taking the kettle and pouring the boiling water inside the teapot.

"So, event planner, eh?" Mal asked as she came with a tray, cup, the pot and a small plate with biscuits.

She beckoned for him to sit on one of the plush cushions she had in what he assumed was the living room corner and laid the tray on a small table.

"still the perfect host I see… I understand why you would work in the field you do"

"Well that's what was the closest to my training, so I settled here once things got calmer and as I said, I made quite a few customers happy. They told others and… well you can guess the rest. On the side I have these 'behavioral' consultations. With the new political system, you wouldn't believe how many people want to educate themselves to proper manners."

"I reckon they would, that job suits you…" he took a cautious sip of the tea. "Hmm, nice!"

"Bergamot tea with a touch of cinnamon…"

"I remember 't was one of your favorites."

"Indeed…" She took a sip too. "What about you, Mal, what have you been doing all these years?"

"Well believe it or not I'm a legit transport ship now…"

"Oh?"

"Yes, turns out several core or border planets businessmen had wanted to expand their trade for a long time but because of the Alliance they had to do it on the hush hush, with people like us back then… When the Alliance was no more, they did not have such hindrance and looked for ships and captains that would work for them on a regular and secure basis and were not afraid to fly long jobs. _Serenity_ was kind of a celebrity in certain business circles and some of our previous successful jobs were put forward by them businessmen with whom we used to have dealings. It provided a large enough contact network – direct contacts, not middle agents like Badger – that our jobs are steady. I was looking for a stable income for Zoë and Emma, so it came at the right time and for once, we were in the right place. The crew was willing to try and stay with me, one thing led to the other and so now I'm a contractor for several types of businesses. Zoë is mapping our trips and planning the cargo accordingly. She seems to like being organizing stuff like this. I find the deals, Zoë helps too – she's a harsh negotiator sometimes – and I captain _Serenity_, although she don't need much captainin' most times." He shrugged.

"What about Emma?"

A tender look passed over Mal's face. "Oh, you should see her, she's growing in heaps and bounds! She's a cunning little girl, but there's nothing really malicious to her. Zoë is a very good Mom and she gives her daughter as proper an education as she can. Maybe you can give her some tips from time to time," he winked.

Inara chuckled, "I'm not sure children would appreciate my teachings."

Mal resumed, "Simon has gotten contracts with pharmaceutical labs to experiment stuff in deep space and we had to turn one of the storage rooms next to the infirmary into a small lab where he can conduct experiments or test other types of biological samples. He also continues watching over River's progress. She's come a long way that one, she's really become a good pilot and she can hold her own in a normal conversation. She still has her weird moments, but she's stable enough so we can trust her not to fly _Serenity_ into a sun or something," he smiled to himself, "and last he remains the ship's doctor, so when we have to transport sick or injured passengers, he's the one seeing that they get where they're supposed to go safely."

"Kaylee's still in the engine room?"

"Pretty much, yes… And Simon's bunk… They're married now and have been working on a baby for some time but cannot seem to manage. Simon's run fertility tests on both of 'em, there doesn't seem to be any problem…"

"Stress?"

"Maybe, I dunno… or maybe they're trying too hard… It didn't take Zoë and Wash that long."

"And Jayne?"

"He's still here, he was pretty shaken by the events that led to the peacemaker's crisis. He's changed a mite. Still gruff and in love with Vera, but he's more manageable now. He's my security officer and he oversees deliveries and loading."

"So, what kind of goods do you ship?"

"Same as before, only they're not contraband," he smirked. "I ship medical supplies and machines, cattle sometimes, chemicals, classified items or documents… what we used to do illegally before, only now it's perfectly legit and I get paid before transport, with an extra percentage when the cargo is delivered… Sometimes, it's also passengers, raw material, food… Whatever comes up. The crew seems to have gotten into the game fairly well, and the coin is nice, too."

"You mentioned Kaylee, River, Simon, Zoë, Emma, Jayne, … What about Iris and Bea? They were still on board when I left?'

"Well they both stayed with us a while but after some time they decided they wanted to explore the 'verse on their own. They took their share, bought themselves a shuttle and took off their own merry way. I get a wave occasionally; they seem to be doing good…." a knock interrupted him.

Inara rose, "That'll be Oriana, I'll be right back, you can stay here…"

She started down the hallway and after a few minutes, Mal heard the front door close and a clatter of feet: Inara's and another's. He stood up as she approached.

"Mal I would like you to meet Matt…" a little boy came around her, clutching at her skirt and looking at Mal with warry eyes.

"Matt, meet Malcolm Reynolds…"

"That my Daddy?"

The cup Mal was holding shattered on the floor.


	3. Chapter 3

_Shàngdì de míngzì_! WHAT?!"

The boy had retreated behind the skirt of his mother. "Mal, keep calm, let's talk..."

Mal was trying to comprehend "What… "

"Matt, go to your room sweetheart, Mal and I have to talk, I promise I'll call you," she kissed the boy's forehead. The latter turned heels and disappeared.

"Inara, who's this, what..."

"Mal sit down, I have a long story to tell you, one I'm not too proud of…"

Still in a daze, Mal sat on a chair by the dining table. Inara retrieved the broken pieces of the cup and went to sit in front of him.

"After Miranda, we had reached a point in our relationship when we were on the same page. Once we decided to stop circling one another and act on our feelings, I discovered things about you and about myself that I would never have thought possible. I was ready to dive all in with you, because no matter how much we fought and tore ourselves apart, we were great together. With all your somber moods and zingers and jabs, I knew that was just how you coped, how you let your frustrations out, and likewise, I am strongminded and do not always do what's best to evacuate my frustrations…" She paused, smiling to herself and brushed Mal's hand before resuming.

"After the events that followed the first attack from the Peacemakers, you became distant, almost foreign. I was feeling extremely guilty about what I had caused at Fiddler's Green during the war, guilty for not telling you sooner, I had tried to amend myself so many times, I was confused and hurt, it felt like we had gone back a few years, it seemed like a rift had been wedged between us again and I couldn't take it. I felt all I did was hurting you and you would be better off without me. That's why I left after we spent our last night together."

She paused. "We were planet side on Jiangyin if you remember. I hopped on a transport ship and to make a long story short, I eventually ended up here on Aberdeen about a month and a half later. That's when I discovered I was pregnant. I tried to send you a wave then, but you appeared to be on the run, and I could not reach you. I was tired, I had to prepare for something I'd never thought possible… I had a hefty nest egg of savings in a bank account on Sihnon, I made arrangements for it to be transferred. I was living at friends' and I decided it was best to settle here for the time being and be in as secure an environment as possible for the baby."

She stopped talking and let the information sink. Mal had his shoulders hunched and was staring at her tile floor.

"Inara I… I don't know what to say. I need to…" he stood up. "I need to get some air." He picked his belongings and started for the door which he slammed as he exited.

Inara sighed.

"Mommy?"

She turned around to see her little boy with a worried look etched all over his face. "_Tōngguò fótuó, Malcolm Reynolds nǐ shì wǒ suǒ zhīdào de zuì nǎorén de rén!"_ (*By Buddha, Malcolm Reynolds, you are the most aggravating man I've ever known!) she muttered.

"Why is he mad? He's not happy to see me? He don't love me?" he threw his arms around his mother's neck as she bent, tears glistening into his eyes. She lifted him up.

"No sweetie, it has nothing to do with you… I told you many times about him, but he didn't know about you until now."

"Why?"

"It's complicated, honey… I didn't know how to reach him and…"

"But why is he here now?"

Inara sighed for the umpteenth time. "Fate I guess?" she brushed a tender hand down his cheek and kissed his brow. "Don't worry sweetheart, he'll come back…" she tried reassuring the child. "He's just surprised is all. I know him, he'll come back, I promise. Now why don't you go wash your hands, I'll start dinner."

The boy looked at his mother then wiggled to be let down and disappeared in the sleeping area when his feet touched the floor.

Inara looked at his retreating form sadly "you'd better be coming back, Malcolm Reynolds!" she spoke to the ceiling.


	4. Chapter 4

Inara was putting the last of her dishes back into storage. Dinner had been silent. Her usually lively little boy had eaten his food silently and without enthusiasm. Her guilt was growing tenfold and she really hoped Mal would return. She couldn't fault him if he didn't though, she had many things to feel guilty for and the first was her leaving _Serenity_. Granted when she did, she was hurt and ashamed, but she could have been a little more patient and perseverant. She should have stuck with Mal, he'd have come around eventually, they would have talked… Instead, she'd chosen the cowardly way, as usual.

Well, no more. She put the towel she was using down and waved Oriana.

Mal walked down the street with no goal, lost in his thoughts. Was Inara playing with him? Was the boy really his? How could it be possible that she never contacted him?!

He was furious, panicked and at the same time, couldn't help the joy he had felt at seeing her again, despite everything, despite the pain her leaving had caused him. One look at her and it had all come back.

He stopped walking. He didn't know where he was, but he had stayed on the main street? He turned around and finally saw the Golden Lion Inn sign in the distance. He started towards it then stopped, turned around and retraced his steps.

As soon as Oriana knocked on Inara's door, she left.

Mal had said he was staying at the Golden Lion Inn, although it was late, she took the direction of the establishment.

She hadn't gone a hundred yards when she bumped into a man "_Tā! Kàn kàn nǐ yào qù nǎlǐ!_"

"I'm sor… _Oh Wèile shàngdì de ài!_ Inara, we need to stop bumping into each other!"

"Mal! I was coming to see you!"

"Yeah well, 'likeminded…"

"I…"

"Let's go back to your place, we have to talk," he started again towards her street.

'_Great!' _she thought '_no nonsense Mal, just what I need…'_

Once inside, Inara sent Oriana away with her apologies and took him in.

He threw his browncoat on the back of a chair, looking a bit agitated.

He waited till he heard the front door shut. "How could you hide this from me?!" he started, his jaw twitching.

"I didn't…"

"Yes, you did!"

"I told you, I tried to send you a wave, but you were not responding!"

"Yeah well, you should have sent more!"

"I did! Look Mal…" she shook her head looking down, "we could fight over the number of waves I tried sending you, I'm not sure that would do any good… I should have insisted, you're right, but I didn't. So, now you know and we need to talk about how it's going to be from here."

Mal deflated and sat. "You're right…"

An awkward silence settled until Mal broke it "Tell me what happened after you settled here?"

"I told you I hopped from planet to planet for a while after leaving _Serenity_. I wanted to get a feel about what was going on politically speaking and how it was going on, in order to decide what I was going to do, so I remained close to the central planets and they were a mess. I still had a few contacts from my days as a companion, some were eager to provide assistance, whether it was information or temporary accommodation. I never actually planned to cut all ties with you, it's just… I needed to clear my head before confronting you."

"Well it did not choose to not see you for 5 years!" he stood up.

"I know!" she stood up too and looked at him fiercely. "I know, Mal," she resumed in a calmer tone, "and believe me if I could rewrite our history I would, but I can't. This is who we are, who we've always been, and we have to make do with that. I have to live with my guilt, and you have to live with…"

"With what? Tell me what, Inara?! Because so help me, right now, I have to live with the fact that I may have had a son for years without knowing anything about him!"

Inara sighed "Do you want me to continue the story?"

Mal sat down again and nodded tersely.

"When I reached Aberdeen, one of my contacts was in need of help for a huge business reception he was hosting, and he asked for my insight. I eventually helped organizing everything. That was my first client. Others heard of me through the grapevine and so started my small business. It's lucrative enough to feed and shelter the two of us."

Mal absorbed her words. "Why d'you name him Matt?" he asked after a short silence.

She shrugged, "It was close enough to Mal, I suppose…"

"Tell me about him?"

Inara finally sat in front of him, taking her time to think. "He's lively, intelligent and has a fierce sense of what's good and what's wrong," she looked at him, smiling tenderly.

"Take's after his Dad-eh?" he chuckled.

She resumed. "Ever since he was old enough to understand, I told him about you, showed him pictures, explained who you were and that at some point, we had been in love…"

"At some point?" he looked at her.

"Well, I wanted to be as honest as possible with him. When he started asking questions, I didn't want him to think that there hadn't been anything other than physical attraction between us… I mean we never actually said the words but…"

"I know what you mean," he put a hand on her arm. "Tell me how he came to be?"

She smiled to herself, "well, my friend here Emmerlynn, provided accommodation at his guest house while I was helping him organize the event I told you about. One evening I was having dinner with his family, I fainted. I dismissed his worries, putting the incident on the fact that I had overdone it a little, but I fainted again shortly after the first time. He immediately called his physician who amongst other things did a blood test, that's how I found out."

"… When was that? You sure he's mine?"

If looks could kill, Inara's would have done Mal right then. "I told you I quit companionship right after Miranda and yes Mal, you have been the only man in my bed ever since! _Nà zhǒng báichī_!

"Hey!... watch it… I…" he hesitated, "Inara, it's a LOT to take in!" He stood up and started pacing, "Seeing you again, seeing that… that you haven't changed a bit, you're still…" he stopped pacing an turned toward her, "… look at you, still the most graceful and beautiful woman I've ever seen and you… you made a life out here and you made a kid and…"

Inara closed the distance and gently put her hand on his arm "WE made a kid, Mal… Not just me, we."

He slumped on the seat he had just vacated.

Inara sat noiselessly at his feet and rested her head on his knee, "When it was discovered that I was pregnant, Emmerlynn was adamant he would attend to my every need, even though I told him I couldn't accept." She chuckled, "the discussions we had then were more than animated…"

"That I can believe!" he agreed.

"Anyway, we finally compromised. He suggested I stay planet side for the pregnancy and birth, he was very happy about the way our collaboration had turned out and suggested I do more, which would occupy me in the meantime. It made me think I could try my hand more seriously and since I was going to have to remain here at least 9 months, I eventually agreed to his suggestion and transferred my savings. We found this place and I let his doctor monitor my pregnancy and direct me to the best obstetrician for the birth. Emmerlynn and his doctor were there for the delivery and fortunately, all went well. I even managed to continue working up until the last moment: Emmerlynn lent me his own personal assistant and some of his own staff so I could keep my nascent business going…" she paused "and then one stormy morning, Matt was here. I fell in love with him the minute I laid eyes on him; he's been the center of my world ever since."

"This Emmerlynn fellow, is there a way I could meet him? I reckon I would have to thank him for taking such good care of you…"

Inara looked at him sadly, "that's not possible: Emmerlynn died last year of an untreatable parasitic disease he had caught years ago on a Rim planet. That is why he always had a personal physician with him. We can go and see his widow if you wish? Oriana, my babysitter, is his niece…"

"How was it the first time? I mean how did you manage with a baby here?"

She resumed her story. "As I told you, I had tried sending you several waves to tell you about the pregnancy. I don't know where you were back then, but my waves were not delivered. I was becoming frustrated…"

"… That's when we were trying to stay under the crumbling Alliance's radars, I could barely keep _Serenity_ afloat and enough food in the galley, my regular contractors were gone, or appeared to be, Badger got in too many troubles for his own good... At some point we even landed on Hera of all places, because what better place to hide than right in the middle of an Alliance nest… and before you ask, we were nowhere near Serenity Valley… Turns out a friend of the late Shepherd's sheltered us for a while in his farm… but that's a story for another time…"

She took her cue from him. "… when Matt was born, I honestly didn't have much time to think about you and quite frankly, I feared you were dead. So, I decided to move forward without you and try and raise my son on my own. Emmerlynn introduced me to his son Gerald, who became my business partner."

"Anything going on between you two?"

Inara rolled her eyes "_Ó, tiān nǎ, nǐ zhēnshi gè jídù de báichī!_ He's married, Mal, to my preferred caterer, chef Jameson Stutton, he's gay!"

Mal had the courtesy to blush a little, looking at his feet.

Inara shook her head smiling to herself "It's sweet that you are jealous Mal, I may be guilty for not trying hard enough to reach you and tell you about Matt, but I was not going to introduce another life partner to him. As I told you already, I never hid who his father was and that I hoped he would be able to meet you someday, even though I was not sure if that would ever be possible. He's a curious boy, very intelligent…"

"He and Emma should get along fine…"

"There's that…"

"What do you mean?"

"Mal I have a life here, a business. We need to talk, now that you know, what we're going to do, and we need to do it with clear heads. It's late, we've had a trying few hours, why don't we sleep on it and talk tomorrow? How long are you staying?"

Mal sighed pensively, crossing his hands on top of his head, "you're right. There's no need for us to start fighting and yelling. _Serenity_'s pampering should last 5 days, so we have that time to figure things out. I'll go back to the Inn and be here tomorrow morning first thing," he stood up as did Inara.

"Or if you want, you could sleep here, I can accommodate guests."

"My things are back at the Inn…"

"As you like, but that way you can start bonding with Matt."

Mal thought for a few minutes, "Look it's best if tonight I sleep at the Inn, but I can check-out tomorrow and come here for the rest of my stay planet side, what do you say? I can be here early morning…" he left the rest of the sentence hanging.

"All right then, I'll see you tomorrow." They faced each other silently then all of a sudden, Mal drew Inara in his arms and kissed the top of her head.

This was unexpected, but she relaxed in his embrace. It was short lived as he released her all too quickly, but it gave her hope that all would be resolved eventually.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said softly in a gravelly voice, then he picked the bag of purchases he still had from the afternoon and was out of her living room and out of her home.

She looked around, gathered the few things that needed put out and shut the light off.


	5. Chapter 5

Mal couldn't sleep. He tossed and tossed in the bed, was tempted to wave Zoë and ask for advice but finally decided against when he saw that it was the middle of the night. Besides, he decided he needed to sort things out with Inara on his own, before informing the crew he had seen her again and that there was a little surprise alongside. God knew how unbearably moody he had been the month that followed her abrupt departure and he was a bit apprehensive of their reaction at the news.

Inara and he really needed to work on improving their communication skills from now on. They had a child!

He let that thought sink in.

He had pondered over the same many times over since he had learned of Matt's existence, but it still felt foreign.

He was a dad… The reckless youth, turned battered soldier, turned disillusioned smuggler, turned businessman was now a father! That knowledge came with responsibilities, some of which he reckoned he had no idea how to approach: never mind their status as a family, what about formal education? Although Emma did not seem to mind the bizarre "formal" education she got from the members of his crew and the odd passengers he sometimes transported. What about living arrangements? Would Inara accept to come back to _Serenity_? Would she stay planet side and request he visit, pay some kind of alimony…? She was right, they needed to talk about it with clear heads.

He tried getting a little shut_eye but barely managed a couple of hours. At dawn, he got up, took a shower, packed his few belongings and checked out before heading straight to Inara's.

She opened to him promptly, wearing a flowy silk gown. She had obviously just got out of bed.

"Couldn't sleep either?" he asked with a smirk.

"Too many thoughts," she acquiesced. "You're early, Matt is not up yet."

"Good, that way you can tell me more about him over breakfast?"

"I was about to start on that actually, why don't you leave your bag next to the sofa, there's a baker down the street who makes _brioche_ it should be delivered momentarily. In the meantime, tea?"

"I would rather something stronger if you don't mind. I haven't had a decent coffee in months despite our food sources being a little more regular and exotic than flavored protein bars and powders these days, our stock of coffee beans is not as replenished as it should."

"Good thing I have a pack for guests then," she rummaged into one of her kitchen cabinets and extracted what she needed.

Mal came back from the living room, he was wearing the blue shirt he had bought the day before, along with one of his new brown pants and his ever-present suspenders.

She observed him coming her way. He looked a bit more rugged and needed a haircut, but he was still as handsome as she remembered and that turned her insides to mush for a few seconds.

He stopped just short of entering her comfort zone and smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. He raised a hand to brush a strand of her hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear.

She turned swiftly to hide her blush and tended to the percolator, which was noisily whistling, announcing that coffee was ready. As she poured the dark liquid into a cup, she felt Mal's hand gently caressing her neck. She turned and looked at him. He returned her stare, his blue eyes reflecting tenderness, regret and something else, indescribable.

Once again, without a word, her pulled her into his embrace, "I missed you, 'Nara," he said in her hair, softly.

She squeezed her eyes shut to prevent the sudden tears from falling and tightened her embrace, "I missed you too…" she managed to respond, unsure the faint sound of her voice had carried to his ears.

"Why do we have to fight all the time, we need to work on that," he continued.

"We are too much alike, Malcolm Reynolds, that's why…" she was interrupted by a small voice.

"Mommy?"

Mal and Inara separated and turned towards the little boy with bed hair.

"Good morning, sweetheart, look who's here!" she said, gathering the little boy in her arms to kiss him.

Matt looked at mal with a frown, "So, it's true? You're my daddy?"

"It appears that I am, yes…" Mal said as gently as he could.

"Good, it means you're not dead."

Mal burst out laughing, "well I reckon I am very much happy to be alive too!"

There was a knock on the door. Inara turned to Mal and beckoned for him to take his son into his arms, "That would be the brioche, I'll be right back."

Mal clumsily accepted Matt, "oh wow, you're heavy!" he winced.

"That's because I'm four! I'm a big boy!"

Mal chuckled and put the boy down, then crouched so he could be at the same eye level. "So, do you have questions about me? Your mother told me all about how you came to be and how you settled here, but maybe you want to know why I haven't been around all this time?"

Matt looked at him with a serious expression. "Mom told me you are a pirate?"

Again, Mal chuckled, "well that's not entirely true now, but when I was exploring the 'verse with your mother, I may have done things that would be considered piracy, or smuggling…"

"What's smuggling?"

"Smuggling is when you ship things in secret," he tried to explain, "back in those days, you sometimes had to do such things to survive, but now I have a legitimate business. I do the same as before, but it's legal…"

"The brioches are here, fresh and warm!" Inara came into the area that served as an open kitchen. Carrying a basket replete with smelly buns. Matt quickly took a seat around the table in the dining area and waited patiently for his mother to bring him his beverage.

Inara put the basket at the center of the table and gave his coffee to Mal who also sat down.

"How do I call you?" the boy asked genuinely.

Mal looked at Inara for help.

"Whatever you like, honey. I don't think Mal would mind?" she looked at him questioningly.

"Err… No, Matt… whatever you like…"

"I'll call you Mal for the moment," Matt said, obviously relieved that he was not required to call a mere stranger 'Dad'.

They ate in silence, Matt sneaking not-so-discreet glances to Mal which he returned as kindly as he could.

"Mom said you were a soldier once," Matt said, "she said the war is one of the reasons you two were fighting all the time."

"I was a soldier a long time ago, and yes, your mother is right, it was a source of disagreement between us because during the war, we were not on the same side… But like I said," he looked Inara in the eyes, "it was a long time ago and eventually, I think both me and your mother can agree that sides do not matter, especially now that we have a new political system," he paused, "Them people who make laws and try to organize things," he tried to explain, then resumed, "I let the past define my actions for too long, I realize that now." Again, the looked at Inara. "Matt, I don't know how to be your Dad, but I'm willing to try, will you help me?"

"I don't know how to be a Dad!"

Mal chuckled, "No, but you know how to be a son. You have been a son to your mother ever since you were born so why don't we start from there and see where it leads us?"

"Will you stay here?"

"That is something we need to discuss, sweetheart," Inara said. "Mal is staying for a few days, so you will have time to get to know him, and he you. Right now, you need to go clean yourself and dress, Oriana will be here soon to take you to your teaching."


	6. Chapter 6

Matt stood up and started toward the corridor, then stopped and looked at Mal gravely, "you want to see my room?"

Mal looked questioningly at Inara who nodded her consent.

"Sure, let me see your den!"

Mal followed Matt through the hallway which he had correctly guessed led to the sleeping area. Like the rest of the house, it was simple: white walls, round large windows that overlooked the terrace and a small patch of grass and plants. Matt turned left and they came into a small room, with a single bed, shelves (with lots of books), a small closet and a few toys scattered on the ground. A wash basin was behind a curtain in a corner. Other than that, the room was bare. Matt picked up a tablet and sat on his bed, beckoning Mal to do the same. "That's you…" he gave him the tablet. "Mommy kept all she had on you here and that's how I know you…"

Mal took the tablet and started browsing the database. There were short films, pictures of _Serenity_'s crew, pictures of himself… Some of them he didn't recognize although he gathered Inara must have taken them when he wasn't looking. There was one of them, oblivious to the world, sitting in the pilot's chair, Inara was on his lap kissing him, courtesy of River, probably. He touched the screen absentmindedly.

"Do you love Mom?" Matt asked as he saw the picture Mal was looking at.

Mal looked at the screen, pensively "I don't know that we love each other Matt… That picture was taken at a time when there was something stronger than friendship between your Mom and me… Now? I don't know." He put the tablet down and took his son on his knees. "You know my meeting with your Mom yesterday was pure chance, Matt. I'm glad I met her, I'm glad I met you, but it's a lot to take in. I don't know what your Mom will want to do, we both have our own lives and there are lots of things to think of…"

"But you could stay here?"

Mal sighed, "I wish it were that simple Matt. 'Promise you something, though…"

The little boy looked at him expectantly. "I promise you we'll use what little time I have here to try and sort things out. I may not be staying for the foreseeable future, but now that I know you're here, I will try my damnedest to come as often as possible, deal?" he held his hand.

Matt smiled and shook it, his chubby hand disappearing within Mal's manly grasp. "Now I'm guessing you have to clean and dress, I'll be with your mother…"

He stood up and left the room.

Inara saw him approaching, she was still in her kitchen area, reading a tablet and sipping her tea.

"His room is tidier than mine when I was his age…" he started by ways of introduction.

Inara chuckled, "yes, he likes order and abhors any kind of mess."

"Well, he didn't pick that from me, must be from you," he came next to her and smiled. "Can I ask for another cup of coffee?"

Inara put her tablet down, "of course, there is some left in the percolator, it's still hot." She stood up, went to pick the cup she had just rinsed, and poured the remainder of the beverage inside.

Mal took it from her hands, "Thank you."

"You're welc…"

"Mommy I'm ready!" Matt's voice carried from his room, interrupting her, as the little boy emerged from the corridor with a small satchel. He stopped before the two adults.

"So, you'll be here when I come back from teaching," he rose expectant eyes to Mal.

Mal crouched and ruffled the boy's hair, "I reckon I'll be here… If your mother doesn't throw me out before you come back," he added looking at Inara with a smirk as she shook her head.

"Don't worry Matt, I won't," she reassured him.

A knock interrupted the pleasantries. Inara went to open the door and let her son go with his babysitter.

She closed the door and turned to see Mal had not moved from his spot. "So… Alone-eh?"

"Alone," she acquiesced. "So, tell me a bit about your adventures after I left?"

He frowned pensively, "well, I reckon you have a fair knowledge of the political mayhem that occurred shortly after your departure?" he looked at her questioningly.

Inara nodded.

Mal resumed, "we were planting every disruptive seed everywhere we could back then, the Alliance had it bad for us… We hopped from planet to planet – which is probably the reason why you couldn't reach me, if my math is correct – stirring things up here, lighting fires there and trying to properly deal with the Peacemakers at the same time. I wanted to take the Alliance down, but not at the cost of innocent civilian lives. At some point it became really hot for us and _Serenity_. Shepherd Book's old friend, Tristan Stirring was a farmer on Hera – of all places. Book had once told me he was a sure friend. We landed on Hera and we remained there for a good 6-month, helping at the farm with harvest, cattle and the like." A nostalgic look crossed his face "…I was quite the farmer once... 'reminded me of when I was young on Shadow…"

Inara squeezed his hand in encouragement.

"We waited for things to cool down a mite. When we heard the government had collapsed, we left Hera with a dozen cows to deliver to Persephone. When we got there, we were contacted by no other than Warrick Harrow who informed us of the demise of Badger, and that he needed someone of trust to carry out deliveries for him. The Alliance was no more back then, and the new system was beginning to emerge. He said he wanted a clean slate. He'd had enough of middlemen and wanted to work with people he could trust and would simply do the job he asked, not go through other people to do the job for them. He added he had partners that would be interested in direct service as well. He had been pleased with our first collaboration all those years ago and if he were satisfied with me once more, he would recommend _Serenity_. One job well done led to the other, Zoë suggested we try and contact people for whom Badger had worked and it was the start of our new life."

"Tell me about Emma?"

"Oh, she's the spitting image of her mother: strong, fierce… and she does know what she wants. Zoë is very protective. She's introduced her to her father, quite like you did with Matt and me, and fortunately the database is plenty rich. She even has pictures of Wash with long hair and a moustache!"

Inara chuckled, "I remember these, Zoë showed them to me once."

"Yes, they're funny… also we go visit the memorial once or twice a year; you know?... check if the holograms are still working… A Joshua tree has grown at the foot of the column… Zoë says it's Book and Wash's way to say they're okay…" he went silent.

"I miss _Serenity_…"

Mal's throat was suddenly very constricted so he waited for her to continue.

"… I miss deep space, I miss the change of scenery… I don't get to travel much aside from the main cities here. I don't go out there anymore."

"You could… come back?" he said in such a low voice that Inara was not sure she had heard him right.

"I… I don't know, Mal… Ever since we bumped into each other, I feel like my life has been turned upside down… In a good way, I think, but I need time… Can you give me time?"

He nodded imperceptibly, but she probably didn't see him as she continued, "And if I do come back, can we resume our lives like nothing happened? Can the crew accept me? Can you… Can you forgive me?" she looked directly at him.

Mal took his time before answering.

"No. I can't forgive you for I ain't a forgiving man. I wouldn't know how. But…" he raised a finger, "I don't need to forgive you to get you back to _Serenity_. I meant what I said when I told Matt I had let the past define my actions for too long. I was deeply hurt when you left. The second time was worse than the first because I knew then what we were together, and it hurt like hell, but I had my share of responsibility in your leaving. I kicked myself over that many times… Hell the crew kicked my ass about it, too – in not so many words... What I aim at is we both made mistakes, Inara. The Alliance took a lot from me, it took my home, it took my friends, it took my platoon, it took my ideals… it took my faith and when you left the second time, it took the woman I…" he took her hand and looked at her. "It took the woman I loved."

He paused. "Matt asked me if I loved you and I said I didn't know because I didn't want to give him false hopes, but _Shàngdì de míngzì _Inara, yes, I loved you. I think I loved you the first time you came to see me to rent my shuttle, all those years ago. That's why I couldn't bear seeing you with other men, doing… whatever it was they were doing to you or asking you to do to them. Women I didn't care so much, but men… it made my blood boil. And the _Kělián de húndàn_ that I was took his frustration on you. When you told me you'd stay, after Miranda, I promised myself that I would have an honest conversation with you, but you trashed all my good intentions when you visited my bunk the next night, and I had other reasons to keep my mind occupied…" he smiled apologetically. "After that, like you said, I thought we were on the same page and that conversation needn't happen, but I'm having it with you now, 'best as I can."

Silence descended on them, Inara stood up and went to stand in front of the picture window that opened on the small yard.

"I am exhausted, Mal. I need to weigh in my options, and we need to take Matt into consideration, but I want you to know I'm considering all possibilities."

He stood up too and came to stand behind her. He hesitated briefly then encircled her waist from behind and she rested her back against his chest.

"I wish it were less complicated, I wish I had never left, I wish…" she shook her head looking down.

"… shhh… it don't matter, 'Nara. I don't want it to matter. I don't promise you a happily ever after, I reckon I don't know what tomorrow will be, but I want to take whatever chance we have right now, if we have one at all. If it lasts long as I stay here, then so be it, but I reckon I like the idea of our time being a mite longer."

She turned into his arms to face him and nested her face underneath his chin, "I'd like that too, Mal, but I have a lot of things to consider, some of which are not incompatible with a life on _Serenity_, but some others I am not so sure."

"Then let those thoughts rest and we'll see about them when it's time for me to go," he put a hand behind her neck and gently tilted her head toward his.

He looked at her, a silent question in his eyes, and saw the same need in hers, so he kissed her.


	7. Chapter 7

Inside Inara's head, bells started ringing in alarm, but she chose to ignore them and let Mal kiss her. She had missed him and when his tongue gently forced the barrier of her lips, again, she let him in and kissed him back. What was it with this man that left her powerless to resist him? She used to be the one in control, she used to be the one to charm or put distance when she felt she had to. That never happened with Mal, even in bed, and those five years had not extinguished her need for him, merely smothered it a little.

Mal's lips left hers. She closed her eyes and welcomed his silent embrace. He was gently caressing her nape, both lost in the moment and timing their breath on one another's.

Eventually they broke the embrace. Mal gave her a sheepish look which she wiped off by giving him a light kiss and smiled. "Matt will be home soon from his teaching. There's a park that he loves in Dundee where Oriana takes him oftentimes, maybe you could go together after lunch? I have a session with a young man, then I need to wave a few clients and meet with Gerald about a venue. I'll introduce him to you when you get back if you want?"

"Yeah, why not? So, about Matt… what is that teaching your sent him to?"

"I told you he's bright and last year he developed an interest in books. First, I would read to him, then he started asking about the letters and such… I started with the basics but soon I couldn't cope with his progress. Jasmine, Emmerlynn's widow, told me about a Buddhist tutor and he's been going every morning since. He's impressive, you should hear him read aloud. He started with plain English and now he's starting to read Mandarin. He is also gifted in the art department, his writing is beautiful for a boy his age, and I bet he's going to have a terrific calligraphy when he starts ideograms."

"… Again, must have come from you… that's an area which I never quite grasped."

She smiled at him and resumed, "His tutor is also introducing him to meditation so he can channel his energy in the right direction, and he has just started basic science. Matt loves math, I don't know where he picked that, I was never good at it."

"I reckon I was not too gifted in that area either," Mal concurred.

"Oh, but that doesn't stop there, he's quite good at understanding blueprints and mechanical drawings…"

"You sure it's my son?" he interrupted in jest.

Inara smiled. "Oh, that he's your son… You may not see it, but he has that expression when he's puzzled, and he raises an eyebrow… the first time I noticed I swear I could see a mini you! He has your nose, and the way his mouth moves sometimes, a little on the side, just when you want to make a joke… That's you…"

"Spoken from a mother's point of view…" he said with a soft smile.

Inara blushed. "I want you to experience this, Mal, speak of your son, be proud of him…"

Mal sighed. "I don't know him well enough yet… We'll see about that, though."

"Yes, I guess we will."

At this moment, the front door opened and both Matt and Oriana stepped inside. Inara decided to introduce her.

"Oriana, this is Malcolm Reynolds, he's Matt's father."

Oriana seemed surprised. "Nice to meet you, Sir. I thought…"

"We met by pure chance yesterday," Inara explained, "he will be taking Matt to the park this afternoon, but it would be great if you could show him where it is?"

"Mal is taking me to the park? Yes!" Matt exclaimed, obviously thrilled.

"Yes, buddy, what do you say?"

"You'll love it and that way, I can show you my ship!"

"You have a ship?" he turned to Inara questioningly.

"Yes, it's a secret! I'm building one that will take me and Mommy to the stars, it's in a bush in the park! When I'm done, I could also take you?"

"Oh, then yes, I can't wait to see your ship!"

Oriana watched the exchange then looked at Inara, "Of course, I'll take them, Inara, will you be needing me afterwards?"

"No, Oriana, thanks."

"Then I'll come by an hour after lunch and walk them. Mr. Reynolds," she nodded in salute.

"Mal's fine," he corrected, "and thank you for Matt."

"You're welcome, Sir – Mal, I'm glad he could finally meet you," she smiled.

"I'm glad I met him too"

Lunch was had with a lively Matt who proceeded to tell Mall all he had learned that morning, including the meditation session they had had, which – according to him – helped him have new ideas for his ship.

Mal was overwhelmed by conflicting feelings: on one side he still had trouble believing he had been instrumental in creating this child, on the other he couldn't help but feel a nascent deep pride at the fact that he was indeed the father of such a wonderful boy.

"I have to take a nap before we go to the park, Mommy says it's good for me, so I'll go now!" Matt put his plate by the sink and disappeared into his room.

"Does he always speak that much?" Mal asked.

Inara chuckled, "not always, but he likes to share his experiences. I think he's excited that you're here."

"Believe it or not, I was quite the chatterbox when I was his age. My old man used to growl when he'd had enough and sometimes that would shut me up, but some other times it didn't… Until I was sent to my room with my ears ringing. That's about the only memory I have from my dad. He died when I was 8, or was it 9?... Anyway, after that, my mom took over managing the ranch and there was no more room for chat because I had to work the fields or the stables and was too exhausted to talk."

They continued with the small talk until Matt woke up from his nap and Oriana took them to the park, which was indeed not far from Inara's house.

There, Matt proceeded to explain what each apparatus was for in the playground, until the two reached a small groove of short trees and stopped.

Matt looked on both sides then took Mal's hand, "come with me, I'm going to show you my ship!" he said conspicuously.

Mal took his cue and looked on both sides, too before entering the groove. Inside, he discovered an elaborate woodcraft made with small poles of various sizes assembled with strings, that indeed resembled a ship… More or less a sail ship… without the sails… or a hull…

He smiled as his boy turned towards him. "This is my ship!" Matt said proudly.

"I'm impressed, Matt," Mal said genuinely. Even though it was obviously born from a child's imagination, it was indeed rather well done for a kid his age. "Did you do it of your own?"

"Gerald showed me how to assemble the poles with the strings, but I did most of it by myself!"

"I see! Well I'm impressed! Although it needs tightening here and there…"

"Of course, I know this one won't fly," Matt said, turning back to his work, "but it's a model and I think the design is good. I want to build one that works one day, when I am big enough to fly."

Mal weighed his next words carefully. "Remember what we talked about this morning? That I used to be a pirate?"

"Yes?"

"Well, there ain't a good pirate without a ship..."

"But I don't want to be a pirate, even if you were a good pirate, you did dangerous things… My ship will be for traveling."

"Oh, but I ain't a pirate anymore, I told you that, too. And you know, I travel a lot with my new activities…"

Matt looked at him and raised an eyebrow. Mal instantly thought of what Inara had told him and indeed, he could see himself in that facial expression.

"So, what is it you're telling me?"

"… That I have a ship, too. A real one that goes into space – we call it the black – and can take you places you're never been."

Matt's face blossomed in pure wonder, "Is that ship the one called _Serenity_?"

"That very same girl, yes…" Mal acquiesced.

"And you could take me to her?"

Mal hesitated, "that's your Mom's call Matt, there are a lot of things to take into account, but I could at least take you to see her."

"Yes, but if you come to visit here, you can take me for a trip?"

"Again, if your mother agrees, then yes, I can take you for a trip. But I won't do it unless your mother is completely fine with it, okay?"

"It's a deal!" the little boy enthusiastically held his hand, mirroring his father's same action that morning. Mal shook it, laughing and all of a sudden, he found himself hugging his son as the little boy threw his arms around his neck.

"I'm so happy I met you, Dad…"

"And I'm happy to know you, too, son…" he replied in a constricted voice.


	8. Chapter 8

Eventually, they came back to Inara's house too late for Mal to meet Gerald, but Inara told him he would the next morning, since they had things to discuss together.

The afternoon in the park must have been exhausting for Matt because his eyes were drooping at dinner. His mother sent him to bed which he accepted on the condition that Mal tuck him in.

The last 24 hours had also been nervously intense for Mal, too and he asked about sleeping arrangements shortly after dinner.

Inara showed him to her en-suite bathroom so he could shower, then to an alcove he had not yet seen, right next to her living room where she had her office and a long bench seat, plush with cushions.

The events of the day and the previous sleepless night were enough for Mal to quickly succumb to the lure of sleep. Inara was surprised to find him already sound asleep as she was bringing him a blanket.

She smiled to herself and covered him with the blanket. Then she sat on the bench next to him and rearranged a few bangs that covered his forehead, her fingers lingering on his face, tracing the new lines she had noticed earlier. He didn't budge. She gently kissed his forehead and retreated to her room. The decision she had made was scary and a real test for her business and partnership, but she trusted Gerald, and they were both willing to try and make it work.

Mal woke up in the night, not knowing where he was and noticed the blanket. It all came back to him, he was at Inara's. He smiled to himself and stretched, letting his mind wander a little bit. For once in his life, luck seemed to be on his side. He didn't want to put too much faith in that and jinx everything, but at least, he would try and enjoy it while it lasted. He went to relieve his bladder then back to sleep for an uninterrupted night until the next morning.

"Mal, wake up!"

He heard the tiny voice from very far away.

"Mal! I'm going to have to leave and I want to say goodbye!"

"Matt let him sleep…" Inara's soothing voice came to his ears.

"… Agnnnn's okay…" Mal groaned. "I'm up…"

"Sorry," Inara's voice was much closer now. He opened his eyes.

"I like that picture in the morning," he mumbled, looking at her with a smirk.

She blushed.

"Mal, Oriana is coming to take me to my tutor, I had a nice time with you in the park yesterday, can we go again? You can show me how to improve my ship?" Matt asked.

"Sure, buddy," he yawned and stretched.

"Great! I'll see you!" he then disappeared and shortly afterwards Mal heard the front door shut.

"Come here", Mall patted the small space on the bench next to him.

Inara sat and he put his arms around her waist.

"I take it you slept well?" she asked.

"I reckon I did, yes… Yesterday was… intense…" he replied in a gravelly voice.

"That is was", she acquiesced. "Why don't you get dressed, there's some breakfast left if you want, and I made you a coffee."

"Oh, I could get used to that!" he smiled but didn't move. "There's one thing missing from that picture though."

"Oh?"

He pulled her down on him. She yelped in surprise. "This…" and he kissed her.

"Mal!" she laughed when their lips parted. "Get dressed, Gerald should be here momentarily, and we have several things to discuss."

"As it pleases the lady," he said, pushing from the bench and grabbing his shirt.

A while later, he was drinking his coffee when a knock resounded on the front door.

"That must be Gerald, I'll be right back."

She disappeared in the entrance hallway and came back with a tall man with dark hair. He was elegantly dressed in a dark blue suit and light gray shirt and reminded Mal of Simon, the first time he met him.

"Malcolm Reynolds, I presume?" he asked politely in a deep voice, extending his hand.

"And you must be Gerald, I can't thank your late father enough for taking care of Inara when I was-err… unavailable."

"Yes, I am aware. Inara told me the whole story and any friend of hers would have done the same, given the circumstances."

Mal decided he like the guy. A little too formal and polite for his taste, but he reckoned he was from Inara's world.

"How about we sit around the table and we talk of what we decided yesterday?" Inara suggested.

"Of course, dear. I brought the documents for mister Reynolds to review and sign," he laid a small briefcase on the table.

"Mal, I have thought long and hard, and I don't want you to be in and out Matt's life whenever you get the chance to come by," Inara started.

"Well knowing of him I could arrange a schedule that could benefit you both…" Mal suggested.

"Still, it's impractical. Mal, what I am trying to say is that I am willing to try and come back to _Serenity_…"

"But what about your business, it makes you happy, I don't want to be the cause of you dropping that…" he said.

"I won't, that's why Gerald is here," she resumed.

Mal turned to her business associate with a questioning look. The latter who put a set of papers in front of him.

"Gerald has accepted to become the director of operations here on Aberdeen. We have been thinking of expanding our activities to other planets, but Gerald's mother is not well, and Gerald doesn't want to travel too far for an undetermined period of time. Me having to be here for Matt, we postponed that possibility indefinitely. Our meeting made me think that it could be the opportunity we were looking for. If we can agree for you to provide a schedule of the worlds you visit on a regular basis, then I can plan to meet with potential new clients. Of course, if that works it will entail that I have a modicum of independence so this would mean a shuttle, and I might need to contract you to transport people or equipment, but if it works, we could nail two birds with one stone."

Mal was silent for a few minutes. "You're sure this is what you want? You're not doing because you think you owe me?"

Inara shook her head negatively, "No, Mal. We have been talking about it on and off for some time and were wondering if we were going to hire someone to travel for us, but we were always a little bit put off by this idea. Our meeting provided us another opportunity to try and develop our business."

"All right then, but we need to hear what Matt has to say about this, too."

"Of course, but I wanted to discuss the possibility with you first, and among the documents Gerald bought here, there are some that concern _Serenity_. I want you to know what you are getting yourself into."

"And what if it doesn't work? What if your business is not expanding as you wish?"

"That's why I shall remain here, to secure the activity," Gerald cut in. "If it doesn't work out, our business shall continue here. Inara was very understanding and supportive at a moment when I needed a friend, that way I can repay her," he looked at her with a thankful look. "My father helped her at some point, indeed, but she helped me sort through my life in her own time, helped me get past my destructive addictions, be at peace with who I am and meet the love of my life. When she spoke of her project, I did not hesitate. Besides, all things considered, we are taking very limited risks. I for one am more afraid of the success she might encounter!"

Mal eyed the young man. The guy seemed genuine and he spoke honestly, "Okay then, show me those documents that concern _Serenity_?"

Gerald smiled and gave him two sets of papers, "this one if the rental contract for one of your shuttles, that would serve both as an office and means of transportation when you are in the vicinity of a potential client," he pointed at one stack of papers. "The other is the contract for transporting equipment and people, it provides insurance for both _Serenity_ and what or who she would transport, as well as sample rates for you to study and discuss if you think they are not realistic enough."

"Wow, you really thought this through," he looked at Inara.

"It's not a new project, Mal. I have been presented with an opportunity to make it work we hadn't thought about before. It came to me while you were in the park with Matt. We talked about it with Gerald and it became clear that it was the right thing to do, for many reasons," she squeezed his hand. "If anything, I feel I'm using you again."

Mal chuckled "well, if it were not for the small addition of Matt, it could be!" he smirked, "but so we're clear, I like to be used that way," he wiggled his eyebrows and Inara rolled her eyes.

Mal became serious again and took his time to read both contracts before putting them down on the table, "there ain't nothing in there that looks tricky or unrealistic." He admitted, "however, I need to run these by Zoë and the crew before signing anything of such importance, even if as captain, I'll have the final word."

"Of course," Gerald said.

"Look, I had to check-in with Zoë anyway today. I also need to check _Serenity_'s status at the docks. Why don't I send her a wave and ask her to meet me… huh… where? You have a suggestion?"

"Why not here?" Inara shrugged.

"You sure?"

"Well I'm going to have to meet her again at some point, right? The sooner the better, and that way she can meet Matt too…" Inara reasoned.

"Alright, I'll wave her to meet me here. When's Matt due?"

"Right before lunch, same as yesterday."

"Shall we wait till he's back?"

"Mal, I appreciate you asking me, but it's Zoë we are talking about and I think it's best she discovers the surprises one by one. Why don't you ask her to meet you here this morning and when Matt comes back, she'll be better prepared than if we spring everything on her at once?"

"You're right. Gerald? You'll have your answer by tomorrow, that okay?"

"We are in no hurry," Gerald stood and took his leave from them.

Inara busied herself with a pot of tea while Mal used her comm system to send a wave to his second.


	9. Chapter 9

"She'll be here shortly; she was in the vicinity. Apparently, Emma's been driving her crazy, she welcomed the interruption."

"Let's just hope it stays that way," Inara muttered.

There was no time to wonder any longer as a loud knock resounded.

"I'll take care of it," Mal said.

He went to open the door.

"Sir?"

"Told you to meet me here, right?"

"Mal!" Emma ran into him.

"Hey, Emma!" he hugged her.

Zoë stepped inside the corridor. "What is this place?"

"Come in, it's all the way down," Mal eluded her question.

"Sir, who's living here, is it one of your business acquaintances that I don't know about?" Zoë asked as she reached the end on the hallway.

"Oh, I think you know me," Inara stood up slowly.

"_Zài... De húzi_! Inara?"

"Hello, Zoë, Emma."

"She knows me? Who is this, Ma?"

"This is…"

"Inara Serra, Emma," Mal took over. "A long lost… friend," he presented.

"I told you about her, Emma, she was part of our crew," Zoë resumed.

"Then why is she not with us now?"

"It's complicated," both Mal and Inara said at the same time, looking at each other.

They proceeded then to tell Emma and Zoë the short version, starting with their chance encounter. Zoë listened without interrupting.

"… and I eventually stayed here because I discovered I was pregnant." She looked briefly at Mal who nodded encouragingly. "Mal is the father."

"All right, now I need to sit," Zoë grabbed a chair and sat heavily.

Inara grabbed a glass and poured some water inside.

"That for me? Oh, you're gonna have to give me something stronger, honey, much stronger!"

Inara opened a cabinet and retrieved a flask.

"All this time you had this, and you didn't give me some?" Mal said indignantly.

"Mal, it's not the time!" she said, filling a glass for Zoë.

Once she had downed the glass, Zoë looked at Emma. "Emma, you be quiet, these people have some explaining to do and I don't want any interruption."

"But…"

"I will not repeat myself, Emma!"

The little girl knew when she had reached her mother's patience boundaries, she sat in a corner and kept to herself.

Zoë looked at Mal disbelieving.

"You knew about that?!"

"I discovered it two days ago, Zoë."

Zoë turned to Inara, "and it's Mal's?"

"Matt is Mal's son, yes. There was no other man."

"By all the powers of the 'verse, Sir, I must say I am amazed at how calmly you seem to be taking this."

"Oh, believe me, I didn't at first, but I had 24 hours to make my peace with it."

"Wait, I don't understand," Emma interjected, "if you have a son, does this mean he'll come with us and I'm gonna have to share my bunk with him?"

"Ah, no, Emma, but that's actually a good point you're raising…" Mal responded, then looked at Zoë, "Inara wants to come back…"

"Sir?"

"… And I agreed to let her back, but there will be consequences…"

"That's an understatement, Sir."

"Zoë, I understand I am not your most favorite person at the moment…"

"Oh, it's not you, Inara, it's him," she said, pointing at her captain.

"Me?! What d'I do?!"

"You want me to list?" she challenged. "I saw this ship skink before it even set sail properly. I saw it in your eyes, Sir, when Inara mentioned what she'd done at Fiddler's Green. You went straight back to Serenity Valley and let the hardened soldier take over. At some point I would have followed that man to Hell and back but that was during the war, sir, and the war was over. Didn't you think they'd taken enough from us? We lost, Sir, and I lost my husband trying to make things right! We all make mistakes and it was not my place then to say you were making a big one with regards to Inara, but now I can't keep this to myself. Yes, what she did at Fiddler's Green was wrong. But she did it not having the full unadulterated picture, and she'd been trying to make amends, but she was never too good for the great Malcolm Reynolds!"

"Zoë, you're out of line!"

"Am I?!" she rose from her chair and started a staring match with Mal. Then she resumed, in a calmer voice "Inara left the cowardly way, maybe, but to me it was more self-preservation than anything else. She paid the price, she chose you, resigned her commission after Miranda, that should've held some kind of importance to you, but you decided otherwise…"

"And I paid the price, too." He said in a low voice. "We discussed this already, Zoë, I made amends, we both did, and we're trying to do something here..."

"So, she wanna come back? Fine by me, Sir," she interrupted.

Silence descended upon the four of them. Even Emma did not dare speaking a word.

"Just to be clear, that mean you don't object to Inara returning and running her business form _Serenity_, then?" Mal asked clearing his throat.

"That's for the captain to decide, Sir, last I checked, it ain't me."

"I'm asking you as a friend, Zoë!" Mal roared, surprising Emma.

Zoë stood up again and lay a hand on Mal's forearm, drawing his eyes to hers. "Then Mal, I'd be happy to have Inara on board with us again. Her business never hindered ours, I reckon it even helped us more times than not, now all you gotta do is straighten that head of yours and do the right thing. But let me get this straight, Sir," she resumed using his rank, "if you ever even start pushing her away again I swear I'll kick your butt from the engine room to the airlock!" She said menacingly, "Sir." She added for good measure.

There was an awkward silence, then Mal chuckled. "Thank you for your bluntness, Zoë, and thank you for that, but you won't need to kick my ass… I aim to keep her with me this time…"

They had not noticed that Inara had disappeared from the main room, but they did notice her return as she said, "now there's still one last thing to take into account, and he has just come back," Inara led Matt to meet the others.

Emma perked at the sight of the little boy.

Matt went to stand before Mal's second in command. "You're Zoë," he said seriously, "I know you from Mom's pictures," he held out his hand to her.

Zoë smiled and crouched before shaking his hand, "and you must be Matt. Nice to meet you."

Emma came to stand in front of him. "You're short!" she said.

"Emma!" her mother reprimanded.

"What? S'true!" the little girl protested.

"With my Dad's genes I'll be taller that you!" Matt responded.

"Well for now, you're shorter than me…"

"Kids!" Zoë intoned.

"Hi, Emma, I'm Matt," he politely resumed, "Mommy did not tell me much about you, but I know who you are and I know who your Mom is… want to see my room?"

"Ah, Matt," Inara interrupted. "We have some things to discuss, all of us. Maybe you can take Emma to your room after we talk?"

"But Mal was supposed to take me to the park this afternoon!" he protested.

"Tell you what, buddy, I'll make it up to you with something even better."

"What is it?"

"It's a surprise, so I'm not gonna tell," Mal mimicked a zipper locking his lips.

"Matt, sit down." Inara gently coaxed her son.

When all were seated around the table, both children on their mothers' knees, Inara cleared her throat. "Matt, a lot of things have happened these past two days, and there is something we need to discuss. Something that could change your life."

The boy turned and raised expectant eyes to his mother, but Mal took over.

"Your mother wants to expand her business, and for that, she needs to travel."

"She does already!"

"Not only on Aberdeen, Sweetheart, to other planets," she added.

"But who's going to take care of me?!" he asked in alarm.

"That's the thing, buddy… We would be taking care of you, but you would have to come with us… on _Serenity_."

Matt's eyes grew. "That's the surprise?"

Mal nodded.

"And I'd get to be with you? Both of you?!"

"If you agree, yes," Inara confirmed.

"I don't wanna share my bunk!" Emma reiterated, pouting.

"You won't have to, since Kaylee's settled in Simon's room, her bunk is available, and it's right next to mine," Mal reassured her.

"Is this true, Daddy?"

Mal was once again overwhelmed when he heard the title in his son's mouth. "You better believe it…" he croaked.

Then it was an explosion of joy, the little boy crying and jumping down his mother's knees before rushing to his room, chanting "I'm going on a spaceship! I'm going on a spaceship!"

Zoë smiled. "I think it's settled then, Sir."

"I reckon it is?" he asked Inara who nodded.


	10. Chapter 10

The three days that followed passed in a whirlwind of preparations of all kinds: Mal announced to the whole crew that Inara was coming back and that he had a son, Zoë oversaw _Serenity_'s last repairs, along with Kaylee, while Jayne took care of the cargo they were taking and Inara straightened everything she could with Gerald.

She was to keep the house for the time being, as a fallback location and a permanent office for Gerald who would take over the behavioral counselling.

Mal and his son continued bonding over visits to the park and strolls to the spaceport where Matt discovered what _Serenity_ looked like from afar untill he finally saw the whole ship as she had just been refitted with new port thrusters and was finally out of dry locks.

"I love her, she's beautiful!" he exclaimed the first time he saw her.

"Ain't she?" Mal said, proudly.

"I hope I can go many places with her… and you!"

Mal picked his son up in his arms, surprising himself at how natural it felt to do this. "Yeah, buddy, now that you're gonna be with us, you can explore the verse."

"You're not mad anymore?"

"Why would I be mad?"

"You were mad with Mom the other day."

Mal sighed, "No, Matt, I'm not mad. Your mom and I… it's a complicated grown-ups' story, but I think we've both decided that we should work on making it less complicated. To make it easier for you… and for us, too, eventually."

Matt threw his arms around his father's neck and hugged him. "I don't want to come back here without you"

Mal looked him in the eyes, "I promise I'll try my damnedest to keep us all together."

"Thank you, Daddy." Matt said into his father's neck. Then he pulled back a little and looked at him, "You can put me down, now?"

Mal obeyed and they returned to Inara's house.

They were leaving the next day and Mal had arranged for the mule to be close by so they could load what she would be taking with her and transport it to _Serenity_ beforehand. She would finish sorting out her things and set the shuttle as she saw fit once on board. It hadn't changed that much as a matter of fact, except for the drapes she had herself taken down when she had joined the crew for good, six years ago, it still had some kind of feminine touch her twin shuttle didn't have.

Jayne was waiting by the mule as it was parked in front of Inara's house, munching on a licorice stick.

"Hey Jayne, where's River?"

"'nside with Simon," he mumbled "it's hot out here, tell'em to hurry, I wanna pack this thing in the ship before I become a sizzling piece of meat!" he said gruffly.

"Will do, Jayne," then he turned to Matt, "Got all the things you wanted to take?"

"Just my books, my learning tablets and a few toys, Mommy did the rest," Matt confirmed.

They got inside and met Simon, River and Inara in the kitchen area, Inara had just told Simon about Emmerlyn's sickness as much as she could before he go visit his fellow physician and try to learn more. Emmerlyn's parasitic disease was one kind he had not heard of and he wondered what his fellow physician had discovered about it.

River smiled broadly when she saw Matt, "and here's mini Mal, hello, mini Mal!"

Matt smiled, not bothered by the nickname. "Hello, River, I finally got to see _Serenity_ and she's beautiful! You are lucky!"

"Maybe I can let you pilot her?" she joked.

"Hey!" Mal interjected, "he's far too young for that! Don't put silly ideas inside his head, now."

River looked at Matt mischievously and put her hand in front of her mouth before speaking in Matt's ear, "we'll do it when captain sour mood is not looking!"

"I heard that!"

Matt giggled before rushing to his mother to tell her all about what he had seen and done at the spaceport with his father that morning.

Simon looked at him with envy. Mal put his hand on his shoulder, "you shouldn't be trying so hard, Simon. I didn't even try and look at him."

Simon sighed, "I know, Mal. It's Kaylee I'm worried about. She was thrilled when she met Matt, but deep inside I know how she feels. I'm on the verge of trying ART."

'You know what you should do? You should take a break. Just enjoy the moment, things will settle down. Take it easy… As for myself, I'm thinking of adding a kindergarten to _Serenity_. I swear she's becoming a real nursery and I'm becoming… soft…!"

Simon chuckled and patted Mal's shoulder.

"We still love you, Captain," he joked.

Then he reached River and they took their leave.

Mal looked at Inara. "You're done with the mule, Inara? Jayne is getting antsy…"

"Yes, I've packed all I was going to take, the rest I can carry when we leave tomorrow, they're personal belongings and toiletries," she walked towards him smiling.

"Kaylee's with _Serenity_, she wanted to oversee the last of the repairs, since she's out of dry lock, she can take passengers. Everybody will be coming on board tonight, but I was not sure you would." He looked at her questioningly.

Inara sighed and brushed his arm. "I think it's best if Matt and I spend the night here one last time."

Mal nodded, "okay."

"You're welcome to stay…"

"No, I'll go back to _Serenity_. Maybe you need your time alone with Matt and I've got things to do before we leave. I'll pick you up tomorrow morning and we'll see where we go from there." He gently kissed her head.

"Dad, can we go to the park one last time?" Matt asked, carrying a few items he put into one of the chests still opened in the living room. "I want to say goodbye to my ship."

Mal crouched and looked his son in the eyes, "Yes we can go, but I'll have to leave early and tonight I'll be on _Serenity_."

"Can I come?"

"No, Matt, we'll spend our last night here together, but you'll be on _Serenity_ soon enough, sweetheart."

"Oh," he said disappointed.

"Don't be sad, buddy, you'll see her soon enough. It's just one night."

"But why won't you stay here?"

"I'm not leaving you, Matt, I just have things to do before we take off tomorrow, Captainly things."

"Like what?"

"Like… plotting a course, meeting with our contractors, checking the goods… lots of boring stuff a four-year-old boy will not understand or enjoy."

"But you could teach me?" he raised hopeful eyes.

"Matt that's enough, you will go to the park with Mal and then you'll see him tomorrow morning." Inara said firlmy.

"I don't want you to go!" he burst out crying and threw his arms around his father's neck. Mal stood up with a crying boy hanging to his neck as if his life depended on it and had no idea what to do. So, he simply let his instinct take over and cooed the boy. "Shh Matt, I think with all the excitement this morning and yesterday you're a little tired. So, here's what we're going to do: we will take a bite, I'll come with you to the park so you can check your ship before you go, then I'll take you back here and you'll have a long nap. I promise I'll be here tomorrow at sunrise."

"Oh-kay…" he sobbed.

"Hey big guy," Mal looked at his son. "Better?"

Matt nodded, his eyes puffy. Mal put him down and ruffled his hair.

"Sweetie go clean your hands and we'll have lunch," Inara said, softly.

Matt disappeared towards his mother's en-suite.

"He's exhausted," she started.

"Well, at his age with all that's happened in just a few days, can you blame him?" he asked.

She grinned tenderly, "no… as a matter of fact, I am exhausted, too."

He gathered her in his arms and rested his chin on top of her head. "Tell me about it, in four days I've aged 40 years!"

She chuckled, "you haven't."

"I have! Four days ago, I was a still a young pirate turned businessman and now I'm a responsible Dad! You outdid yourself this time, Miss Serra!"

"Outdid?"

"I always warned you not to use your wiles against me, but this time…"

"_Nà zhǒng báichī_!" she slapped his chest in jest, chuckling.

He smiled and pulled her back against him.

"Do you think we can make it work?" she asked.

"I promised Matt I would do my damnedest. He's worth it, you…" he pushed her to look in her eyes and caressed her cheek, "… are worth it."

He took his time kissing her, forgetting where he was, as did she, enthralled in all the tenderness he was putting in his kiss…

"EWW!"

They pulled apart.

"Why did you do that?!" Matt asked.

Inara blushed.

"Do what?"

"What you did with your mouth to Mom! It's disgusting!" the boy said, outraged.

"That's called kissing, buddy and one day you'll find it to be something really enjoyable…"

"Mal! He's four!"

"Wiles again, Inara, I can't help it, you have bewitched me!" he smirked.

"You're impossible!" she rolled her eyes.

"Well… don't do that again," Matt said sternly, sitting on his chair.

"Oh, son, you better get used to it!" he whispered into Inara's ear, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.


	11. Chapter 11

By the middle of the afternoon, Mal left Inara and Matt, bringing a bag of Inara's belongings with him that would go into the shuttle.

As he reached the spaceport, he first checked with the port authorities to get all the paperwork ready for them to be leaving the next day.

Their Cargo had already been delivered: Medical supplies to be transported for a part to Angel, then several planets in the Red Sun system. That should not take them more than a day. After that, they were to pick ice from St Albans to be brought to Haven, their longest trip.

What remained of the main colony after the alliance massacre in Haven, had sheltered several other displaced survivors, and they had decided to try and develop an Oasis-like settlement that would be self-sufficient and could also become a vacation resort. All efforts combined, it worked so far, after initial difficulties, but it meant they needed large water supplies they did not have yet as the water tables existed but were set deep inside the moon's crust and a complex aquifer network needed to be developed first. It would probably take decades, but for the moment they compensated it with ice supplies.

Mal then went to check the cargo crates which were all sealed and properly identified. His last stop was with the engineer who had overseen _Serenity_'s works, in the engine room. Kaylee was there, too, browsing through the reports with the engineer and his foreman. From afar, she appeared to be satisfied with what both were telling her.

"… we also purged the cooler system and discovered there was a micro-fissure, so we changed that part – on the house. I know several changes had not been scheduled but we did a complete check-up, as your captain ordered, and we didn't want to leave anything amiss."

"So, everything's fine now?" Mal interjected, stepping over the threshold.

"Joss tells me she's like new," Kaylee said.

"She is," the engineer – Joss – confirmed. "You know, I've always had a soft spot for class IV Fireflies. They're more reliable than class Vs, smaller, but more maneuverable and sturdier. It's a pure gem that you have here, Capt'n."

"Don't I know it!" he clapped the man's shoulder, "And err… I was wondering, did you manage to do what I asked with the two bunks?"

"Ah yes," Joss nodded with a smile, "that was last minute, but we managed to rig something that will work quite well!" Joss nodded enthusiastically. "Want me to give you a tour? We had to change the desk's orientation though… Maybe you could get a smaller one?"

"… Not important."

"… well, the space is a bit more crammed in your bunk…"

"… not a problem neither."

"All right then, shall we?"

They left the engine room and went to see the crew's quarters while Kaylee continued with the foreman. After a while, Mal came back looking satisfied.

"You're done, Kaylee?"

"Yes Captain, I know everything I can, and she'll be flying smooth!"

They parted ways with the two men and went back inside. Once in the cargo bay, Mal stopped Kaylee.

"Kaylee…"

She turned to him.

"I want you to know I understand what all this new… organization is doing to you and I wanted to thank you for not objecting to your old bunk being given to Matt."

Kaylee smiled reassuringly, "it's okay, Captain, I have no need for it and Simon's cabin is closer to the engine room."

"That's not what I aimed at. I talked to Simon and…"

"Mal," she interrupted gently, "you needn't worry about me. I'll get over it, I always do," she said.

"And you needn't 'get over it', Kaylee. Inara might be of assistance on some of your issues. That's what I aimed to say."

"Aww! That's so sweet!" she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him.

Mal looked embarrassed, "all these changes are making me soft, I'm gonna lose my grip on the crew," he mumbled.

"Grip? What grip? We follow you because the coin is not bad!" she joked and Mal rolled his eyes.

Kaylee shook his arm affectionately, "sleep well, Captain. Oh, 'forgot to tell you, we'll have a surprise ready for Matt tomorrow."

"Nothing nefarious I hope?"

Kaylee chuckled, "No, don't worry about it."

"'cases like this I worry, Kaylee, it's my job, even if it's become a mite easier these past two years!" he ascended the metal stairs that led to the upper levels and the crews' quarters.

Kaylee visually inspected the cargo hold then went through the passengers' dorms, wondering if the advice Inara was going to give her was going to be about sex. She frowned. She didn't need any sex-related kind of advice, did she?


	12. Chapter 12

The next morning, Mal dutifully knocked on Inara's door at sunrise. He heard a clatter of feet coming from the corridor and before he knew it, he had a pair of arms around his neck, hanging on for dear life.

"You came, you came! We're leaving!"

Mal laughed, putting his son down. "Of course I came, did you think I wouldn't?"

"I hoped you would," Mal responded, unsure.

"Matt, I have one word, and I was not going to leave you or your mother here!"

Inara emerged from the corridor, too, carrying a set of bags. "I don't think he slept more than a couple of hours!" she exclaimed. "He was too restless!"

"That's my boy!" Mal ruffled his son's head. "The day before something important, I always have trouble sleeping!"

"Well, I did not have much sleep either!" Inara protested.

"Ah, come on… with the lull of _Serenity_'s engines, you'll sleep okay tonight! 'That all you have left?"

"All I'm taking yes," she took a deep breath, "Come on, let's go…"

She locked the door and picked one of her bags as Mal took the second. Matt took his mother's hand then without hesitation, he also took his father's free hand and they started down the street towards the spaceport.

As they neared _Serenity_, Matt became excited and tugged on the adults' hands. "Can I go?" He asked his mother who nodded.

He ran the short distance that separated them from the gangplank then stopped and turned towards Mal with a worried look.

"The crew's not here?"

"They're inside, getting ready for take-off," Mal replied as he reached his son, then stopped. "Ready?" he asked.

Matt nodded excitedly and took Mal's hand once again as they ascended the ramp.

Matt's eyes took a moment to get accustomed to the dim light of the cargo hold, but Mal pushed him a little ahead of him. Then as his eyesight got better, he could see all the crew assembled on the above catwalk. He stopped in wonder.

"Captain on deck!" Zoë said in a loud voice.

Matt timidly looked at both his parents standing a few steps behind him. Mal smiled encouragingly, "she means you, buddy!"

Matt smiled broadly and looked at the crew standing at mock attention.

"You're supposed to say, 'at ease'," Mal whispered.

"At ease!" Matt repeated in a loud voice.

The crew relaxed and Matt clapped in excitement.

"Okay, 'nuf with this charade, can we set to work?" Jayne asked gruffly.

"We can, Jayne," Zoë replied calmly. "Sir?"

"All right people, let's pack this thing up and take off, we have work to do!"

Kaylee hit a button and the gangplank behind them slowly rose as the airlock slid in place. The crew scattered towards their posts and Mal and Inara took the stairs with their son.

"We'll tour the ship once we're in the black. For now, leaving atmo will be a mite bumpy so I'll show you to your bunk," Mal explained as they reached the crew quarters. "You'll have to be careful at first, getting inside is a bit tricky, see?" He pushed his door open and started down the ladder. Once in his bunk, he waited for Inara to drop her bags which he caught and put down at his feet.

Then, Inara helped Matt getting down the first steps, "keep your hands of the side bars and hold them," she instructed.

Mal climbed the first two steps and gathered his son as he went down, "You'll get used to it, but at first, you'll have to wait for someone to help you down, okay? Emma got the gist of it pretty fast, but she was born here…"

"Yeah, but I'm your son! I'll manage as quickly as she did!"

Inara had joined them in Mal's bunk.

Matt turned around and inspected the room, "that's your room?"

"It's more than just my room, it's also my office. Your bunk is pretty much the same."

"… How do you wash? You don't have a sink?" Matt interrupted, continuing his visit.

"Sure I do, but it folds into the wall," he went to pull the sink out, "see?"

"Oh wow!" then he stepped before the wall by the sink. "What's that door?" he showed a sliding door in the wall opposite the bed.

"Yes, what's that door, Mal, it wasn't there before?" Inara questioned.

Mal smiled conspicuously to his son, "open it?"

Matt turned the lock and slid the door without difficulty. It opened on to the next bunk. Inara looked at Mal with surprise etched on her face.

"I had it installed yesterday…" he whispered.

Matt had stepped over the threshold. "Another bunk! Is that…"

"Yes, Matt, it's yours. Emma's is separated from her mother', but she's older and just recently got her own bunk. She's on the other side of the hallway. Our two bunks were normally independent, but since you are going to stay with us for a while, I've asked the guys who worked on _Serenity_ if adding a door here was doable… So you have your own space, but if you need us, we're right here."

"That means Mom is going to sleep with you?"

Mal looked at Inara questioningly.

"You've changed, Mal, I'd never have pegged you for such a considerate person, but you keep surprising me."

He brought a hand around her waist. "I try… So, you'd agree to stay in my bunk?"

"It has improved, but the space needs a feminine touch…" she mused.

"'nara!" Mal groaned.

"We'll give it a try, okay?" she laughed.

"That's all I'm asking…"

"But… you only have one bed!" Matt observed.

"Ahah!" Mal shook his head negatively, "It's a double…"

"You added a double bed?!" Inara asked in a surprised tone.

"The 'single' you have there folds in two…" he said, pointing at the bed from his bunk. "I got it on a return trip from a guy who owed me extra. He was a technical furniture trader, I got him a deal he was going to lose, in exchange, he offered to improve my sleeping conditions, although I never had much use for it. Now I do…"

The little boy forgot all about his mother's sleeping arrangements when his eyes fell on one of the chests Jayne had taken yesterday. "Oh yes! My books!"

Mal and Inara stepped back into Mal's space.

She put her arms around his neck and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "I must say I like the new Malcolm Reynolds."

"And I pretty much like the present Inara, too, but don't get fooled. I still get cranky and I'm still that stubborn son of a…"

"Mal!" she warned, "children?!"

He grinned. "Why don't we help him get settled, then we'll go to your shuttle so you can start unpacking, too and setting up the place as you like."


	13. Chapter 13

After much cooing and persuasion, Matt finally accepted to take a nap while Mal helped Inara unpack and start setting her office in her former shuttle.

River was at the helm and piloting smoothly, Jayne was in the cargo hall preparing the first deliveries, Kaylee was dutifully watching the engine, Simon was cataloguing the test samples in the database for control for the medical supplies they were to deliver, and Zoë was giving Emma her daily lesson.

Once they were done with the shuttle, Mal and Inara went to see Matt from his nap and show him how to climb up and down the ladder of his bunk as safely as possible, then Mal gave him the promised tour of _Serenity_, Inara in tow giving fair warnings about this or that area.

"Your ship is huge!" Matt exclaimed, "I hope I don't get lost!"

"You'll get used to it, Matt. After a while, it's not so big anymore. But like your Mom said, there are areas that are forbidden to you. It's for your own safety. Emma could tell you she gave her own mother several scares, but she's also been severely punished as a result."

They had reached Inara's shuttle.

"… And that's my shuttle. There are rules here too, Matt. When that light is red," she pointed to the warning light above the airlock, "it means the shuttle is not docked so I'm not here and the airlock won't open. You can come in whenever it's opened, but if it's closed and the light is green, it means I'm working and not to be disturbed: I may be with a client, on a wave with Gerald or someone else." She looked at Mal, "that goes for you, too, Mal…"

He grinned sheepishly.

The rest of the tour included the infirmary where Simon also gave warnings about not touching equipment or not trying to open certain drawers and cabinets. Since the arrival of Emma, they had had to make some adjustments and secured access to those, but a verbal warning was never wasted.

Finally, they met with Kaylee at the door of the engine room.

"All right, big guy," she said while reaching for him and carrying him for the short tour. "You are not to come in here unaccompanied by a member of the crew. And don't even try to ask Jayne because he's forbidden to come here with Emma, it will be the same for you."

"Is this what makes _Serenity_ fly?"

"Yep! That and other parts, but that's my baby, I'm the only one that's allowed to touch her. Me and your Dad."

"You can repair the engine, too?" he asked his Dad in wonder.

"Well there was that one time when your Dad stayed on his own, sacrificing himself for the sake of the ship…"

"Kaylee…!" Mal warned, but Kaylee continued.

"There was no air production because that one part over there was missing" she showed, "and them people who had given us the good part wanted to steal the ship. Your Dad singlehandedly repaired our girl and chased the bad guys away!" she summarized. "Big damn hero!"

Matt looked at Mal in awe.

"She's exaggerating…"

"Oh, I'm not, I reckon it was a stupid plan but in the end it worked!"

"… And it gave me quite a cold sweat!" Inara whispered in his ear.

Mal looked at her, wiggling his eyebrows. "'turned out okay in the end, didn't it?"

"Because you had a streak of insolent luck!" Inara chuckled.

Kaylee and Matt had finished their tour. She gave the boy back to his parents and they finished _Serenity_'s tour with the galley where Matt had a hot chocolate.

They had reached Angel a couple of hours after leaving Aberdeen. They dropped the goods and in return, Simon got samples of infected crops to analyze.

The rest of the day and planet deliveries were not met with any incident and they eventually all gathered in the galley for dinner.

The atmosphere was boisterous, the crew sharing stories with Inara.

At first, Inara didn't really know how to behave, but she quickly relaxed and her fears that things might be a little awkward at the beginning disappeared. Soon, she was telling her own stories.

Sat next to his mother, Matt was very silent, and had stopped eating, his eyes drooping.

Kaylee was telling a story about Jayne and an overzealous elderly lady who had obviously had too much to drink, when the poor boy started slipping off his chair. Fortunately, Inara reacted at once and broke his fall.

Simon stood up in alarm as silence descended on the table.

"It's all right, Simon, he's just asleep," Inara reassured him as Mal crouched next to her. "The days' events are probably finally catching up with him, "he was already exhausted yesterday, and he hasn't had enough to sleep."

Mal slid his arms underneath his son's body and picked him up, cradling him.

"All right people, you go on if you want, we're gonna put this little guy to bed and I think we'll call it a night, too."

The three exited the galley and went up to the crew quarters. After a little maneuvering, they both managed to put Matt to bed, then went in the next bunk through the brand-new sliding door.

"Can we leave it a bit opened?" Inara asked, worry in her voice. "… If he wakes up, it's his first trip in space, he's bound to be a little disoriented…"

"Shh…" Mal interrupted her ramblings, "we'll leave the door half opened, okay?" he reassured her and put his arms around her, kissing the top of her head.

Inara closed her eyes and hugged him back. "It's good to be back," she said after a moment. "I hadn't realized how much I missed _Serenity_ until now…"

"It's good to have you back, Inara… I…" come on, let's sit.

He unfolded the infamous double bed and they both sat on the edge.

"I don't promise a smooth ride, Inara. You know how I can get. But I reckon I've changed. When you left, I changed, when the Alliance crumbled, I changed… In those five years I changed a lot. I grew older, wiser… but the biggest change?... The biggest change is that four-year-old next door. Five days ago, I had absolutely no knowledge of this little guy and now? Now I feel like he's been there all my life…"

"Well, all your life I don't know, but you were in his all his life…"

"Yeah," he smiled, "and I thank you for that. I want to see where this takes us, 'Nara, but I want you to understand," he looked her in the eyes, "I reckon I can be an ass, but let's talk things out. Don't ever leave me again, especially hanging with no knowledge that I fathered a child. If we do this, you have to talk to me. However painful it may be. I promise I'll do the same."

"I promise," she sealed it with a kiss that was supposed to be a quick peck, but Mal's hand grabbed her neck and the kiss deepened.

It quickly escalated until she felt Mal's hand on the skin of her back.

"Mal, stop!"

"What? I've missed you!" he panted.

"Matt is right next door and he could hear us…."

Mal resumed kissing her neck and descended towards her collarbones "… we'll be quiet…"

"Mal…" she moaned.

He stood up swiftly, took a step back and quickly got rid of this shirt and pants, all the time watching a flushed Inara, then he took care of her own clothing as gently as he could muster, considering, all the while kissing her everywhere he could.

Despite Inara's initial reluctances, she had missed this, missed him. She sighed as Mal pushed her up higher on the bed.

They slowly reacquainted themselves to one another as they made love silently.

Mal took his time re-discovering her curves and remembering where she liked him. It soon became a dance of who pleased who as they often changed positions, until they were joined with one goal in mind, abandoning all coherent thought or finesse, rushing towards one final explosion.

They cuddled in the aftermath and Inara fell asleep almost immediately, leaving Mal to ponder over the series of events that had led to this moment.

He realized how much her absence had affected him, how much he had missed her body, the soft sounds she made, how much he had missed her heart, her deep and sensuous voice that had now taken on another quality, that of a mother,… Much as his crew filled some of the voids left by the horrors he had witnessed a long time ago, Inara Serra was the missing part of his soul. She completed him like nobody ever had and he had every intention of keeping her with him for good, now.

Who would have thought he would fall in love with a companion? Who would have thought they would eventually act on their feelings? Who would have thought their union would result in this wonderful little boy who was sleeping in the next room? who would have thought Malcolm Reynolds would one day start a family?

"Well, I reckon I'd never have…" he said aloud as sleep finally took him.

THE END


End file.
